What's NewOfficials say new Harpersfield dam neededStar Beacon (7/14)A 100-year-old dam in Harpersfield, Ohio, could be in line to be replaced by 2018 with a price tag of about $6 million. One concern is that the current dam and barrier are ineffective and expose 1,200 miles of high-quality stream habitation to sea lamprey infestation.

Crew searches for sea lamprey larvae in Detroit RiverDetroit Free Press (6/6)Crews from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service fanned out across the Detroit River, scouring the water for the presence of sea lamprey larvae, which burrow into river bottoms until they become parasites that use their suction-cup mouths to prey on Great Lakes fish.

Overview
Sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) are predaceous, eel-like fish native to the coastal regions of both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. They entered the Great Lakes through the Welland Canal about 1921. They contributed greatly to the decline of whitefish and lake trout in the Great Lakes. Since 1956, the governments of the United States and Canada, working jointly through the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, have implemented a successful sea lamprey control program.

This series of pictures shows a close-up of a lamprey's mouth, lampreys attached to a lake trout, and the damage resulting from a lamprey attack.

Photo Credit: 1 and 4: Great Lakes Sea Grant Network Exotic Species Graphics Library; 2: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 3: Great Lakes Fishery Commission. For more photos, see the Sea Lamprey Fishtank.

Sea Lamprey (Petromyzon marinus)Sea Grant Nonindigenous Species Site (SGNIS) Includes scientifically reviewed articles as well as images from Sea Grant researchers.

Sea Lamprey Control ProgramGreat Lakes Fishery Commission The GLFC's program of integrated sea lamprey management includes lampricide control, construction of barriers in streams to deny sea lampreys' entry, and an experimental program to reduce spawning success by releasing sterilized-male sea lampreys. The program has successfully allowed the re-emergence of the largest freshwater fishery in the world.

Sea Lamprey FactsheetU.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Great Lakes Science Center Outlines the impacts of Sea Lamprey populations in the Great Lakes, research and treatments to protect native fish populations.